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Women can build up how much they can bench press over time. To begin with, you'll only be able to lift a small weight — maybe 30 or 40 pounds. As you gain strength and confidence over time, you'll see an increase in those numbers. Your bench press numbers will also increase if you include supplementary exercises in your training routine that build up the rest of your upper body, such as overhead presses and bent-over rows.

In the Beginning

ExRx.net, an online encyclopaedia for training, features strength standards for women on all the major weightlifting movements, including the bench press. These standards vary according to your body weight. According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, the average American woman weighs 166 pounds. The standard bench press for a woman who weighs 166 pounds and has never trained before is set at a one-rep maximum of 80 pounds. This means that she may be able to bench press 80 pounds once. She might be able to bench press a lesser weight for a higher number of reps, but this will likely be her upper limit.

Novice Numbers

ExRx.net defines a female novice weightlifter as someone who has trained regularly for several months. By this stage of training, most women can expect to see substantial increases in the amount of weight they can bench press. This will be particularly pronounced if they are also doing supplementary exercises. Once a woman reaches the novice stage, the expected one-rep max comes to around 95 pounds, again for a woman weighing roughly 166 pounds. It's important to remember that correct form is more important than quickly adding weight, so don't try to push yourself into bench pressing 95 pounds if you can't bench press 85 pounds perfectly.

Leveling Up to Intermediate

After training consistently for one, two or three years, most women reach the intermediate level of performance. At this stage, they'll still be seeing significant improvement in how much they can bench press, but may find the progress is starting to slow. By this time, the female weightlifter of 166 pounds can expect to have increased her bench press to around 115 pounds. This is a one-rep max, and she may be able to do many more reps at a lower weight.

Getting Competitive

A woman has trained consistently for many consecutive years will eventually reach an advanced level of bench press performance. At this stage, a 166-pound woman could expect to see a one-rep max of 145 pounds. If she decides at this stage to go into competitive weightlifting, she'd be competing with other women capable for bench pressing 185 pounds and beyond. According to Power Lifting Watch, the current world record for the female bench press in the weight class for women of 166 pounds was set by Laura Phelps-Sweatt in 2011 -- who bench pressed 530 pounds.

About the Author

Lau Hanly runs Fierce For Life, a nutrition and fitness company that helps young women start with healthy eating and smart training without overwhelming them. She has a certificate of nutrition, and provide individual coaching, standard fitness and nutrition programs, and group training.